A Big Surprise for Chevron

Hours before the oil giant released its new ad campaign, "We Agree," prankster duo the Yes Men released their own version.

posted Oct 20, 2010

The real Chevron homepage introduces the "We Agree" ad campaign. Some of their statements: "Oil companies should put their profits to good use" and "Oil companies should support the communities they're a part of."

The real "We Agree" campaign page on Chevron's website.

The Yes Men created a fake Chevron press site and used it to reframe Chevron's new ad campaign. According to the fake press release, the ad campaign "features real people on the receiving end of Chevron controversies in Ecuador, Nigeria, the U.S. Gulf Coast and elsewhere. Each print ad is designed with an authentic pop-culture street-art aesthetic, and features a sincere slogan."

This fake ad's small print candidly references Chevron's environmental impact in the Global South: "For decades, oil companies like ours have worked in disadvantaged areas, influencing policy in order to do there what we can't do at home. It's time this changed. People in Ecuador, Nigeria, the Gulf of Mexico, Richmond, and elsewhere have a right to a clean and healthy environment too. "

This fake ad reads: "Extracting oil from the Earth is a risky process, and mistakes do happen. It’s easy to pass the blame or ignore the mistakes we’ve made. Instead, we need to face them head on, accept our financial and environmental responsibilities, and fund new technologies to avoid these mistakes in the future."

This fake ad reads: "Oil extraction is dangerous. We know that. That's why Chevron has some of the world's top experts in preventing and handling oil spill accidents. We're ready - how about you?"